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Thread Number: 6380
Airway 55a? |
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| Post# 71011 6/2/2009 at 09:21 (5,440 days old) by airway88 () | ||
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As I know nothing about airways AT ALL! I was wondering what an Airway 55a is and how does it perform. Any help? | ||
Post# 71020 , Reply# 1 6/2/2009 at 13:57 (5,440 days old) by sleepdoc  (St. Louis, MO) |
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The 55a is the original Air-Way canister from the 1930s and 1940s. It is cylindrical with a wider base with feet on which it stands upright. It doesn't have wheels. The hose plugs into an angled connector at the top and swivels 360 degrees. It is metal and very heavy. It came first in purple then in metallic light blue. It uses the same round bag that the newest Air-Ways use. As usual, if used with genuine bags and cared for, these Air-Ways can still work just fine. The hoses deteriorate, and I've seen only one, in Tom Gasko's collection, that remained servicable at the time. I have a purple 55a, which is rare, in fair to good condition. The original hose leaks badly and is, at best, arguably decorative. With a sealed hose, the machine performs fine. Original bags filter and maintain airflow excellently. The problem with Air-Ways now is that the original cellulose bags are no longer made. The bojacks just don't filter as well, and that defeats the real purpose of using an Air-Way. | ||
| Post# 71022 , Reply# 2 6/2/2009 at 14:12 (5,440 days old) by airway88 () | ||
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Do you happen to have any pictures of one? Thanks | ||
| Post# 71030 , Reply# 4 6/2/2009 at 15:29 (5,440 days old) by electroluxxxx (……) | ||
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I also had to dump the motor because it almost went up in flames. it was in good shape but in bad need of repair and would have cost more to repair than a new motor was worth | ||
| Post# 71033 , Reply# 5 6/2/2009 at 16:37 (5,440 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71034 , Reply# 6 6/2/2009 at 16:44 (5,440 days old) by airway88 () | ||
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Thanks! It looks cool! I think my airway 88s hose should work if this one does not have a hose. it really looks so different. Kind of like a small old stove or some sort of water device. | ||
| Post# 71035 , Reply# 7 6/2/2009 at 16:46 (5,440 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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The hose is so supple like new it can be coiled as intended for storage. Note that the 55 doesn't have the lid interlock safety lever so the 55 can be used without a bag - not a good idea. :-) Also, genuine 55 tools are not interchangeable with 66/77/etc wand end coupling, even tho the tools look identical. Meaning 55 tools will only connect to a 55 end J-wand. The wand's raised lock ring rim and mating tool socket have different linear dimensions. Not really a problem if one already has a later Air-Way as all the J-wands and hoses have the same friction connectors and bezels. Dave 
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| Post# 71041 , Reply# 8 6/2/2009 at 17:05 (5,440 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71097 , Reply# 9 6/3/2009 at 02:12 (5,440 days old) by briankirbyclass (Eudora Kansas) | ||
I always wondered about these "Fire Plug" Airway's,,,,and assume the idea was to place the machine in the middle of the room, and the 1940's housewife would work around the room like a clock, with the hose? What if the hose wasnt long enough to reach all the areas of the room? Being that these vacs were so heavy,,Were they intended to be left in the room permanently, like over to the side or corner somewhere, when not in use?,,or where they intended to be hauled off and stored in a closet after using? I wonder if some woman had a problem lifting them,,,certainly if the room was large enough,,,the vac would have to be lifted and moved a little here and there to reach all areas of the room. Yikes! I bet many a 1930s,40s houswife complained to their husband (or anyone that would listen) about how heavy that monster was!,,,and/or made THEM come and lift/shift it around the room. I also bet vacuuming a long carpeted stair case was a nightmare with using it! I guess someone would have to hold the thing upright on a lower stair, while the user went up step by step with the hose. I wonder how many hosewives back then got rid of the Fire Plug in post and in haste when the Kirby man came and showed her his new "Feather Weight" Kirby!! haha | ||
| Post# 71152 , Reply# 10 6/3/2009 at 23:20 (5,439 days old) by collector2 (Moose Jaw, Sk) | ||
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| Post# 71153 , Reply# 11 6/3/2009 at 23:22 (5,439 days old) by collector2 (Moose Jaw, Sk) | ||
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| Post# 71219 , Reply# 13 6/5/2009 at 00:03 (5,438 days old) by briankirbyclass (Eudora Kansas) | ||
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| Post# 71220 , Reply# 14 6/5/2009 at 00:11 (5,438 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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The Air-Way 55 is not as old as it might look to our modern eyes. 1946 to 1950. It was very likely designed and tooled up preceding the outbreak of hostilities and had to be put on hold as all manufacturing turned to the War effort. The very stable wide flared stylized base is similar to trilight floor lamps of the time but without all the girly-curly incised & molded frou-frou extraneous surface decoration - note the 6 splayed legs with round ball feet for anti-tip stability. The hose coil storage rail is reminiscent of submarine periscope guardrails while the fluted body is purely functional, the motor & fans in the cast aluminum base and the upper section enclosing the familiar suspended inner perforated basket that holds the paper liner bag from touching the sides, ensuring full suction over the entire bag surface. Heavy? No more than any vacuum of the time - the shiny polished parts are solid aluminum and the sheet metal is thin wall embossed steel. And of course, the J-wands and floor nozzles are aluminum as well. Having provided for convenient on-board hose storage Air-way also included a maroon leatherette Attacha-Kit tool bag that snapped to the hose rail. Thus the 55 could be conveniently stored in a corner behind a chair or took up little room in the closet. Yes, the hose is a good 2-3 feet longer than other vacuums of the time. Post-war houses being built had smaller rooms and the basic FourSquare house was a popular option for GIs returning to build new homes and families. It is surprising how much area a centrally placed vacuum with a long hose and lightweight wands can vacuum before moving to another room. Hardwood & Congoleum floors with low pile area carpets were the norm in the 1940s and early 50s older homes so this was not a vacuum meant to be dragged across the floor, same as most vacuums other than uprights that had sliding rails and skis such as the extremely heavier 1952-55 Electrolux LX. Even the much admired Compact started out with rear wheels only with two bumps at the front. It was the middle of the 1950 decade that brought such across the board innovations like casters and wheels. Things really took off in 1957 when the vacuum became the wheels with GE's Roll-Easy. We are all spoiled by tug and push around wheeled canisters and uprights and forget what housework was really like for Moms and Grandmothers post-Depression and through the War years, I think. Note that at this same post-war time GE Swiveltops and Reach-Easys, Filter Queen and many others added wheeled dollys for their vacuums to address this perceived inconvenience, rather than provide longer hoses. :-) 
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| Post# 71235 , Reply# 17 6/5/2009 at 07:13 (5,437 days old) by airway88 () | ||
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Cool Thank you all for the wonderful pictures and information. These are really unique vacuums I guess! R | ||
| Post# 71250 , Reply# 18 6/5/2009 at 09:29 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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The 55a Owners Manual | ||
| Post# 71251 , Reply# 19 6/5/2009 at 09:30 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71252 , Reply# 20 6/5/2009 at 09:30 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71253 , Reply# 21 6/5/2009 at 09:31 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71254 , Reply# 22 6/5/2009 at 09:32 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71255 , Reply# 23 6/5/2009 at 09:32 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71256 , Reply# 24 6/5/2009 at 09:33 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71257 , Reply# 25 6/5/2009 at 09:34 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71258 , Reply# 26 6/5/2009 at 09:34 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71259 , Reply# 27 6/5/2009 at 09:35 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71260 , Reply# 28 6/5/2009 at 09:36 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71261 , Reply# 29 6/5/2009 at 09:37 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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| Post# 71264 , Reply# 30 6/5/2009 at 09:52 (5,437 days old) by aeoliandave (Stratford Ontario Canada) | ||
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I admire the dogged diligence of Mrs Housewife as she goes about her tasks but what in gawd's name is she doing mucking about INSIDE her piano on page 7!!! This can hardly be considered a dusty environment with a closed lid and music panel - a great way to snap off hammers and mis-align damper felts. :-) But then again, the lucky Lady does have two pianos...and seems to change her hair colour with wild abandon. Like the other gals on her street she has a smart belted house dress for doing chores and in her case must have a closet full of duplicates. LOL Busy little Bee even vacuums out her own 2 seat Business Coupe so perhaps she's a hardworking successful Bachelor Gal... Dave | ||
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